Pages

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

John Lennox, Innkeeper at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia

The Lennox Inn, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia

Today's Innkeeper, Robert Cram, and the tavern room

The house across the street, where John Lennox actually lived....

The Lennox Inn, a bed and breakfast, is located at 69 Fox Street in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. Lunenburg is a pretty town on the coast, famous for being the berth of the “Bluenose” schooner, found on the Canadian dime. The United Nations has designated the entire town of Lunenburg as a World Heritage Site. The Lennox Inn is the oldest continuously operating inn in Canada, built in 1791 by John Lennox, a Scots immigrant. There is some evidence that it was built by Andreas Jung, and sold to Mr. Lennox for a tavern. This must have caused some concern, for the Lutheran church is still located directly across the street.

From the website http://www.lenoxinn.com/ you can see that this historic building has been lovingly restored and preserved, saved from demolition in 1991 by the current owner, Robert Cram. It is a step back in time to visit or stay here.

John Lennox was born about 1765 in Scotland, and he died on 1 Oct. 1817 in Lunenburg. He married Ann Margaret, the daughter of German immigrants, on 19 Mar. 1797 at St. John’s Anglican Church. Their first child, Ann Barbara, was born several years previous to the wedding. His will left property to his wife, Anna Margaret (Schupp), son William and daughters Anna Barbara, Isabella, Sarah and Lucy, omitting son Louis.

In one of the four large upstairs guest rooms, the name of John Lennox was uncovered on a pine panel. This pencil autograph is still visible above the fireplace. Robert Cram also found a receipt for wine and rum, complete with John Lennox’s name, between the floor joists of the attic during the restoration. The first floor of the Inn is set up for daily breakfast, but the original tavern can be imagined since the wooden bar is still installed in one corner. It still has the wooden cage over the bar, just like one I once saw at the Wayside Inn in Sudbury, Massachusetts.

Several years ago we planned a family vacation to Nova Scotia, and I was excited to book two nights at the Lennox Inn. We were the only occupants, so at night it was spooky to hear the creaking and groaning of the old building, and we half expected to see the ghost of our ancestor, John Lennox. Innkeeper Cram assured me that John Lennox probably never lived there in the Inn, because his personal residence was across the street in a smaller house.

Gen. 2. Bremner Frederick Bollman and Sarah Elizabeth Lennox. He was the son of Dr. Johann Daniel Bollman and Jane Bremner. Dr. Bollman was a surgeon from Hammersleben, Saxony, Germany, who arrived in the New World as a Hessian mercenary serving under Baron Riedesel’s Regiment. He settled in Lunenburg, a mostly German town. Jane Bremner was the daughter of Scots immigrants Robert and Margaret (Stewart) Bremner. Bremener Frederick Bollman was born on 25 Feb. 1802 and died on 15 Dec 1838 in Lunenburg. Sarah remarried to Martin Ernst.
Children:

1. Jane Sarah Bollman, b. 9 May 1833 in Lunenburg; married on 26 Jan. 1850 at St. James Anglican Church in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia to George James Lowe.
2. Ann Margaret Bollman, b. 11 Sep 1835 in Lunenburg; married Caleb Rand Bill on 7 June. 1858 in Lunenburg.
3. James Daniel Bollman, b. 11 Jun 1836 in Lunenburg

Gen. 3. Ann Margaret Bollman and Caleb Rand Bill. An excerpt was found in the Diary of Adolphus Gaetz of Lunenburg: June 1858 Monday 7th- "Married at 12 o'clock noon, at the house of Mrs. Trider, under whose care the Bride had been brought up, Mr. C. R. Bill, formerly at teacher of vocal music in this place, to Miss Annie Bolman, daughter of the late Bremner Bolman. At 2 o'clock the married couple started on their way to New Brunswick, they were escorted as far as Mahone Bay by several young men and maidens who had been at the wedding. The above were married by the father of the Groom, Rev'd I. E. Bill, baptist preacher, at St. John, New Brunswick, who came here for the purpose." Caleb Bill was a music professor, and he and his bride lived at St. John’s, New Brunswick; Houlton, Maine; Watertown, Massachusetts and Salem, Massachusetts. They had nine children, all musically talented. Professor Bill and his wife, Annie, were my great, great grandparents.

Seeing so much conflicting information on GEORGE HAINES TUFTS born in Nova Scotia to Stephen Tufts & Elizabeth Trefrey? George Haines Tufts married Sarah Simpson (1871) then her sister Rhoda Ann Simpson (1879). Problem: George Haines Date of Birthemail: tuftsgang@live.com

Copyright

You may NOT use the contents of this site for commercial purposes without explicit permission from the author and blog owner. Commercial purposes includes blogs with ads and income generating features, and/or blogs or sites using feed content as a replacement for original content. Full content usage is not permitted.

About Me

Author of the Nutfield Genealogy blog and occasional genealogy speaker. My family research includes Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine, with a smattering of Nova Scotia. Please contact me if you see your ancestors on this blog. I would love to share information. I am the former secretary of the New Hampshire Mayflower Society, former President of the Londonderry Historical Society, member of the New England Historic Genealogical Society, the Mass. Society of Genealogists, The National Genealogical Society, and the New Hampshire Society of Genealogists.